It’s 2007 all over again for King James

LeBron James offered a stark assessment of his play in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, during which he missed 14 of 21 shots en route to 15 points.

“I played like (expletive),” he said. “I’ll be much better (in Game 4). I have to do whatever it takes. I mean, 7-for-21 isn’t going to cut it.”

That James is struggling against the Spurs is nothing new. He has failed to reach his career scoring average or shoot better than 43.8 percent in any of their seven Finals meetings. That includes four games with Cleveland in 2007, when he was unable to take advantage as the Spurs basically dared him to beat them with jump shots.

It didn’t figure to be a viable tactic six years later. James has honed his touch since then — if not to a razor’s edge, then a sharpness more than keen enough to bleed opponents unwise enough to leave him open. His percentages from 16-23 feet (46.0) and 3-point range (40.4) were both career-highs, giving an unfair advantage to a player who also converted at the rim better than any other player in the league this season (78.3).

Yet here the Spurs are, treating James no different than the callow youth he was in ’07, ducking under screens, backing well off in isolation, and packing the paint with impunity. And James is playing right along, refusing to trust his stroke in what is shaping up to be yet another hugely disappointing championship performance.

His shot chart from the 2007 Finals (left) looks shockingly similar to what is unfolding now:

About the only thing that looks good is the latter category, until you consider (per Basketball Reference):

1. James typically shoots roughly 69 percent from that range.

2. James typically gets about nine shots per game from that range.

Even more troubling for the Heat, James is regressing as the series wears on, with his points (18, 17, 15), field-goal percentage (43.8, 41.2, 33.3), free throw attempts (four, three, zero) and assists (10, seven, five) all dropping by the game. This suggests not only a player who is losing confidence, but a defense that is gaining as it gets more comfortable with the game plan.

The credit — and blame — can be spread around liberally.

Primary defender Kawhi Leonard is doing a marvelous job, despite what he might think, at the point of attack. (Taking humility to a new level, Leonard said after Game 3 he didn’t think he’s done a particularly good job on James.) The rest of the Spurs are executing their help responsibilities almost flawlessly in what amounts to a borderline zone.

“We’re guarding him with five guys,” Tim Duncan said. “He’s the best player in the world so we’re respecting him as that. We’re trying to make his life as difficult as possible every time he touches the ball.”

Ironically, it still seems the best way to do that is to simply back off as James, despite his improvement as a shooter, remains reluctant to aggressively take what the Spurs are giving him.

Unless he starts not only taking but making those shots, he has almost no hope of unlocking a defense that is dead-set on preventing the penetration that is the foundation to his — and Miami’s — game.